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My pug / boston terrier mix occasionally chuffs and huffs like a horse with the heaves. What could be the cause of this? My old Yellow Lab used to do the same thing. Could it be heartworms? He’s 5 yr. old not neutered male in good health
I recently adopted a dog, she’s a year old Basenji/Lab mix (two very contradicting breeds in terms of behavior). I’m having the worst time trying to potty train her. I’ve tried so many different methods but she refuses to go potty outside. She literally has no warning signs. She already paces and sniffs like its her calling in life. She squats after she already starts going. I have no idea when she needs to go. She will not go potty outside. She acts like grass is her personal enemy and will lay on the sidewalk instead. I’ve tried taking her in and out, I’ve tried waiting her out. We walked in the park in hot weather for five hours and she peed on the floor when we came back inside. Training her to go outside is becoming a hassle that’s frustrating and depressing both of us, should I just give up and house train her to use pee pads or litter instead? We just have a hard time getting outside fast enough with her aversion to stairs and the elevator and there’s a power struggle once we’re outside. How do I react to bad behavior without making her scared of me?
so, you should avoid punishing for toilet behavior in the house. it sounds like she really just doesn’t know the rules yet.
these two links are pretty similar and i’d read both. they should help.
https://lookaside.fbsbx.com/file/How_to_Housetrain_Any_Dog%20(1).pdf?token=AWzFzr8QX0C6GNFaOKVxlOKyjHpjo4l1GKKLvup9PqoNRBewfhYcPaW8epVfl7TD-hzvF2V2XyFxKavjepjUKq75rqsQH7ckQTKV-VOq-pItBQ
remember, be consistent. good luck. housebreaking is the biggest pain in the butt regardless of the age of the dog.
oh, one thing…make sure you’re feeding meals rather than just leaving food out for her. meals will help you to better schedule her toilet runs. try to feed a high quality food, as well.
Thank you so much! Those help a lot!
My husband and I adopted a 2 year old lab mix (we think possibly mixed with Newfoundland) in November 2015. He’s 94lbs and we are his 3rd owners (first two owners were within the same family).
Shortly after adopting him, he started developing sores on his belly near his penis. They didn’t seem to ooze, but were bright red, dry, and scabbing over. He also was scratching at his lips and frequently shaking his head.
We took him into the vet who suspected allergies and suggested we change his food, removing any sources of chicken and beef from his diet. She prescribed 3 weeks of cephalexin, and we switched him to a salmon and sweet potato, grain free food. This was in January 2016.
The sores did resolve with the antibiotics, but the shaking his head and scratching at his lips did not. Two weeks ago I noticed a small sore on his belly again, in the same spot as before, and today I noticed there are now two of them. I also noticed that the inside of his lips seem to be very red (unsure as to whether this is new, or I just didn’t notice beforehand).
We can’t afford to keep throwing hundreds of dollars every few months towards vet care, so I’m wondering if anyone has ideas as to what this could be. I have doubts about allergies since the lip scratching and shaking of his head never went away.
Any help or ideas greatly appreciated
It is still allergies, just less likely to be a food allergy. I would contact your vet by phone and inquire if they want to start him on an anti-histamine etc.
Good Luck
Dr Dawn
Just wondering…..Did your vet say what is causing the head shaking? Head shaking usually indicates an ear infection, but it could also be from a rash inside his ears or fluid in his ears like otitis media in children. This very likely is allergy related. Probally not a food allergy but rather something airborne like pollens or grass or dust or maybe something like a brand of carpet cleaner which is a contact allergy. I had a Chihuahua once that was allergic to the brand of laundry soap I was using. Maybe you can call your vet and see if he’ll be ok with you giving him benedryl and get the correct dosage from him.
Hi, we are sitting for some friends and Pedro the pincher mix seems to be trying to cough something up. we think its bark from a tree. is there a home remedy for us to try?
I had a dog for 15 years, she Loved to chew apart a log or stick and this same sound of coughing would happen but only for a few hours, so I know thi IS a common problem. Thanks anyway.
hi i need hell please.
my mane is alexandra and i have a puppy lab mix golden retrieved 4 months old and for the last 3 days is not eating,not drinking is vomiting and had diarrhoea,i was bring last night in to a vet clinic and i left him in to the drops and antibiotics,and i did a scan for the stomach and check is blood and is fine.is possible to tell me what is wrong with him or if is change to die?i don’t want to lost him thanks so much
hi i need help
Alexandra, this is a question for the vet that took a look at him. what did they say? what other diagnostics did they do? i would also talk with YOUR vet this morning about it, because emergency vets aren’t necessarily as thorough as your own vet would be.
he said he cannot not find anything ,he said he need to open his belly to see if is something in his belly .i am really worry for him
so he didn’t do x-rays or anything like that?
go to YOUR vet, tell him your concerns.
is still not make improved after 24 hours in the vet,
and the belly he se is in pain,and look full
thanks so much
wait, are you saying his belly is distended and in pain? that’s bloat. vet, NOW.
hi laura,my dog is not well for the last 3 days and i bring in the vet,and he make scan to his stomach and nothing is see ,he is in fluid and antibiotic,and check is blood 2 times,nothing show,and the vet ring me and he said he need operation to see in his stomach if is something stock.and i get the answer for the operation ,nothing inside but is inflammation and irritation and he said is virus tummy bug , the vet is said is give a chance for live but not 100 pro-cent,is sleep now and is still back in antibiotic and fluid and pain relief, and tonight i going to see him. please god to make some improve.thanks
after the surgery the vet said to my my dog has gastroenteritis ,i really want to back i really miss him so much
I have 4 dogs. 2 are females. The other 2 are males. The one female is 6. Jack Russell and shit Uzi mix. This would be her 4th litter. Will it kill having this litter.
…there are too many variables here. why are your dogs not spayed and neutered? keeping them together and letting them breed is irresponsible. there are low cost spay and neuter clinics in every state. please get her spayed, as well as your other bitch, if you’re not going to neuter the dogs.
My husky is 5 months old so he is still in an awkward growing stage. His ears and snout are fully developed like an adult dog, but the rest of his body is still growing. He has all husky features such as pointy stiff ears, blue almond-shaped eyes, big bushy tail, little husky-like paws, and he runs very fast and light on his feet. He has a husky mask pattern on his face, but his pattern on his body is blotched with black and white? Very confused. I thought maybe he was just a piebald husky, but lots of people are saying he’s mixed? Not sure. Can someone help me out? 🙂
unfortunately that photo only shows his face and nothing useful of his body, but based on your description it sounds like he has a splash coat: https://www.google.com/search?q=splash+coat+husky&rlz=1C1CHFX_enUS443US443&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj6k_iqgO3KAhVMGT4KHZ1yCUgQ_AUICCgC&biw=1680&bih=935
It is almost impossible to tell the DNA makeup of a dog without DNA testing. And even then, the results may be pretty vague. For $80 you can do a Mars Wisdom Panel that will tell you if your dog is mostly one breed or another, but other than that it can be disappointing.
I have used the DNA test 4 times and each time the results have helped me understand the personality of the dog I was testing.
Seems like you have a good handle on what you dog may be – but if you have the money, DNA testing doesn’t hurt!
Elvis is a 12 pound dog, a mix of puddle and shih tzu , he start liking and scratching with his teeth his rectus and he is bleeding, this is the first time this happen.
yes go to the vet as soon as possible and do let us know
I have a very active Pomchi (pomeranian/chihuahua mix), he was playing fine then I noticed him limping. Front left foot. He is not whimpering and I can move his paw back and forth. Do you think it is a slight sprain? What can I do?
It could be a slight sprain, but it’s more likely he stepped on something. I would check the paw carefully for injuries or something lodged between his toes.
Other than that I would watch him for a few days and try to keep him resting and if he is still painful on Monday I would take him to your local vet.
He’s a mixed breed 3 month and 9 days old pup.. he’s not a pet .he’s a stray but we wanna save him .
If he is not on Heartworm preventative then your dog could have heartworms. Why is he not on preventative? It sounds like it could be a heart problem and he should go to the vet. A vet is the only one who can diagnose Heartworms or another heart problem.